6/18/2017 – The first round of the FIDE World Team Championship saw a few surprises from the get-go. The biggest one was Ukraine's inability to beat the much lower-rated Turkey, held to a draw, though top-seed China was in crushing form as they defeated Belarus 3.5-0.5. In the women's event, Russia and China were paired straightaway and the Russians scored an important win. Still, the most exciting match of the day was the epic bout between India and Poland, fully annotated by GM Alex Yermolinsky.

6/17/2017 – For the first time the Open and the Women's Championships are being held at the same time, from June 16–27, 2017, in Khanty-Mansiysk, the oil boom town in western Siberia. The opening ceremony took place on Friday, with some spectacular cultural stage presentations, all meticulously documented in an hour-long video you should not miss. We will be covering the event on Playchess – check our "Live Broadcast" list on the right.

6/17/2017 – When the second leg of the FIDE Grand Prix 2017 was in progress in Moscow, a group of children with disabilities visited the playing venue at the Central Telegraph building on 19th of May. They saw all the top players in action and then got a chance to play the FIDE president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and GM Alexander Motylev in a simultaneous exhibition."I believe that the meeting with the world top chess players will leave an indelible impression in their hearts", says Polina Torochkova, the person behind this program.

6/16/2017 – An exciting event until the end, Levon Aronian secured his gold with a draw against Wesley So, while Vladimir Kramnik bounced back for a second time in four rounds, defeating Anish Giri. Hikaru Nakamura, clear second, was not only unable to challenge Aronian for gold, but lost to Fabiano Caruana in the last round, leaving him with 5.0/9, the same score as Kramnik. Fortunately for him, he had the better tiebreak and took silver. Large illustrated report with analysis of all games by GM Alex Yermolinsky

6/16/2017 – Missing a forced mate? For the sophisticated chess player definitely a no-go! In the diagram position White is a full rook up and could parry the enemy threats 38.Bb5. But of course he can do much better. How?

6/16/2017 – This week's games come from Jim Guill who is 61 and retired in 2015. A USCF A grade player (i.e. between 1800 and 1999) he lives in Virginia and plays for the team Morphy's Mojo, which is entered in both the D.C. Chess League and the Northern Virginia (NVA) Chess League. He hangs out in local, Northern Va coffee shops, "where I sip tea, study chess and observe alien culture (i.e., the non-chess playing world) as it comes and goes and passes by."

6/15/2017 – It was a very tense round with so much at stake. Not only the top spot, which is still open to be challenged, but the world no.1 spot was under assault. Magnus Carlsen played a topsy-turvy game against Sergey Karjakin in which anything could have happened, but fortunately for him and his legion of fans, he won, and staved off disaster. Vladimir Kramnik was also visibly pressured by the possibility and lost to MVL. Full report and analysis by GM Alex Yermolinsky.

6/14/2017 – My, oh my, what a round. If these words sound like an echo of several of the previous ones, it is for good reason. Once again chess fans were treated to exciting chess, and tremendous drama. Who would have thought to see Magnus Carlsen not only lose his second game, to Kramnik, but also be tied for dead last. On the other hand, Aronian continues his streak, beating Karjakin and taking sole lead. Report with GM analysis by Alex Lenderman and Daniel King.

6/13/2017 – Wei Ming Kevin Goh is an International Master from Singapore who works full-time but still has the ambition to become a Grandmaster. He definitely has the enthusiasm it takes. On his chess.com blog he recently reviewed Vidit Gujrathi's DVDs on the Caro-Kann - with passion, an independent analytical mind, and a good eye for details. After some criticism he concludes that "this DVD is a must for anyone rated above 1800 who wishes to study the Caro-Kann from both sides" and "you will not regret buying" it.

6/13/2017 – The pawnless endgame rook and knight vs rook is usually a draw. Things change, however, when pawns are on the board. But an extra-pawn is not necessarily good for the defending side.

6/13/2017 – It happened eight years ago: in the third round of the Mayor's Cup 2009, 19-year-old Sagar Shah was pitted against the strong Russian grandmaster Vladimir Belov. A product of the Russian chess school, Belov was stronger than the Mumbai boy by nearly 400 Elo points. Sagar's confidence had reached rock bottom. He left for the round from his home with a mentality of already having lost the game. On the way to the playing hall, a miracle occurred! Check out the article to see what transpired.

6/13/2017 – Though it was not the only result of the day, it was certainly the most significant one. The opening went well for Aronian, and very quickly things soured for Kramnik who was lost after just 22 moves. A huge win for the Armenian who also rejoins the 2800 club. Anand broke out of his rut as he soundly defeated Caruana with black, while Giri will be kicking himself as he squandered a won game against So. Illustrated report with GM analysis by Daniel King and Tiger Hillarp-Persson.